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What is keeping you from going ham?

Moleculo

Moleculo

Ham Radio Nerd
Apr 14, 2002
9,239
1,773
283
First, a big disclaimer - This thread is not intended to start a ham vs. cb war...if it turns into that, the thread will get canned.

So here goes...

I was thinking about my "radio journey" tonight, how many different activities I've enjoyed on all types of radio and how many are still out there for me to try and I was struck with a thought:

For all the CB only guys, what is keeping you from getting your ham license? Is it a "religious" thing? Is it a cost thing? Is it the test? Is it the imposition of rules? Is it your Significant Other? Is it initial impressions of grumpy internet hams? Is it ______ ?

As part of the discussion, what would motivate you to become a ham?

I'm really curious and would like this to be an honest, hate-free discussion. There is no wrong or right, just a discussion.
 

hm..ok i,ll bite .

i do not like sideband for starters,all that cq,cq,cq dx junk ...not for me .
too many hams think they are the cats meow.
ham radio is full of guys being nice to each other all the time .that would get boring fast for me .
i need a little cursing,acting a fool,and general chaos to keep it interesting.

ham radio just seems like a bore to me.

there i said it.

who agrees now?
 
currantly i am a Ham and still CB..

That said..

Few yrs ago...back in 83 i was looking to make the jump to ham..
Tried to enlist help of various hams..

All i got back then was.....go back to cb you dummy..

Obviously i found a bunch of hams who were themselves dummies..

If not for another friend of mine a few yrs ago who had himself failed the ham test 3 or 4 times..
I was like why...and set for taking the test with him...
45 mins before test took him on line ( to qrz) and showed what he needed to know..

The point is..

Many who are ham ( thankfully not all ) look at those in CB as some sort of low class 2 way communications people..

Well MOST ham operators came from the ranks of CB..
Yet so quickly after their obtaining ham licensing distance themselves from CB..

Why they do that...i am clueless..

Yet it seems this attitude still prevails ( and that is Totally Wrong)
_______________________________________________________

The other reason i see so many fail to make the jump to ham operators is simply afraid or seemingly unable to pass the tests ( i never understood this...the tests are quite easy)
 
i will agree with funky, BUT I REALLY DON'T KNOW THAT MUCH ABOUT HAM TO EVEN HAVE THAT OUTLOOK ON IT. i should really look more into the HAM before making a statement about whether i think it is boring or not. i love radio coms, so i might like HAM just as much as i do CB. who knows? i think when i return from iraq, i will look into maybe getting my certificate.:D
 
KingCobra_CDX882 said:
The point is..

Many who are ham ( thankfully not all ) look at those in CB as some sort of low class 2 way communications people..

Well MOST ham operators came from the ranks of CB..
Yet so quickly after their obtaining ham licensing distance themselves from CB..

Why they do that...i am clueless..

Yet it seems this attitude still prevails ( and that is Totally Wrong)
_______________________________________________________

The other reason i see so many fail to make the jump to ham operators is simply afraid or seemingly unable to pass the tests ( i never understood this...the tests are quite easy)
Click to expand...


I would just like to make a comment or two.

1: You say "MOST ham operators came from the ranks of CB.". I disagree. A great deal did came from CB while a great deal of them never were CBers in any way ,shape ,or form and I don't mean they lie about it. Many came from a technical background and saw ham radio as a way to tinker with electronics as a hobby that often complimented their job and vice versa.

2:Those that did come from CB and now distance themselves can be looked at the same as a reformed drinker or smoker that now distances them self from those things that he knows were wrong in the first place. Face, whether you want to admit it or not CBer's have brought the negative image upon themselves with the blatant disregard for the rules such as freebanding and highpower along with the insane ranting and rambling that you hear when DX is rolling especially on ch 6 and 19. Many folks grew up and realise what they did before was illegal and now want nothing to do with it.It's not called being snobby,it's called being accountable.

Whenever I hear someone say they don't want to be a ham because hams think they are better than others etc. I just shake my head and ask if they can make up a better excuse because that one just does not cut it.Take a good look and listen to ch 6 or look at the keydown vehicles and then ask WHY would a ham think that way if he does.

This post is not meant to inject controversy over the whole CB/ham thing but I really think that some of the ideas and perceptions out there need to be addressed as to WHY things appear as they do especially if someone is using them as an excuse to do or not do certain things.
 
I started in shortwave when I was 12. Then into CB when I was 13. When I turned 16 a guy gave me a study book for ham radio. But the FCC office was 300 miles away. I already new the code since me and a few cousins had those cb handy talkies with the code key built in them. Years past and I never got a chance to go. In the 80’s I started studying again and finally got my novice. Then a month later got my tech (with code).

I did back away from CB for a couple of years. But found myself back on from time to time. Now I use both services. I feel no more superior than when I was a plain cb’er. I have fun with both. I make money with both. I have dedicated ham operators that have never talked on a cb come in the shop for repairs. Never a negative word said. I treat both with respect and I get the same. I have cb operators that run nice clean equipment and conduct their selves in a professional manner. Same with ham op’s.

Yes there are bad in both services. And it did not start at the drop of the code. But there is good also. And QRN makes a good point through out his intire post.
Don’t let what you hear on the ”hinternet” discourage any of you in any way. Be ham or cb. What you hear on the internet is not the same on the air. Internet is not ham radio nor is it cb. Ham radio is fun. CB is fun. I love both. And both have a place.
 
I was reading where someone said that the Ham guys were rude with him and he was considered to be just one of the CB dummies I see this from both sides and its a Chevy verses Ford type thing. I will have to admit when I was starting out in the 1980's with CB I had a radio problem and my bestfriends mom is a Ham she called this top notch buddy of hers who also was a high classs Ham operator and asked if he would take a look at my radio and fix it for me he said sure.

Well I got there he introduced himself and took us to his radio room in the basement I walked in and was in total awwww. He then showed us all his radios and he was also a radio tech repair guy I was so excited until he said now for starters as he grabbed my ssb cobra radio and lofted it into a waste paper basket next to his bench he said you dont need this garbage anymore and he started schooling us on Ham Radio.

I was offended and kept stairng at that wastepaper basket my radio was in and I WAS NOT A HAPPY CAMPER and just wanted out of there ASAP and thaought this guy is a true class A @sshole is what he is we eventually left and I with aA BAD BAD TASTE IN MY MOUTH ABOUT HAM RADIO AND ITS OPERATORS!!

As the years went by I got more and more deep into the radio world and te repairing and experimenting of the hobby as I went through the start of a horrible Illness I studied more and mor as I listened to local repeaters on my scanners and listen to the HF bands on other radios. I went through 2 books that lapsed in there dates of being good or legit eventhough I had read them from cover to cover and quizzed myself but yet never went to take that test.

I then seen the great internet sites where one could also take practice tests so along studying the present question pool I began taking these online tests and wow peice of cake!! Well it happen I found a testing and took the dang thing I took my time and went over my answers when done for a quick look over and handed it in.

As I sat and wait watching 3 guys go over this test I had just done mine was corrected last to top in off these guys kept looking at me and smiling cause the new I was waiting finally Im called to the head desk the fella looks at me and I said ok how many wrong?? He looked up at me with a straight face and said well I hate to ruin your day but YOU HAVE NONE WRONG you got 100% I was happy that I passed which I wasnt worried about after the online practice tests but either way I PASSED.

I REALIZED ITS EASY ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS READ STUDY 15-20 MINUTES A NIGHT THATS IT!! Take a few practice tests which are free and there ya have it. I a few months later did the same with my General with the exact same results along with studying or helping my wife my 13 year old daughter and a 12 year old son with there tech license we all went in and all walked out smiling. I have a 9 year old daughter who is also studying for tech as the other 3 get ready for General.

Now as I said all it takes is a little study time if you are indeed interested in obtaing an Amateur license and as far as rude people heck there are rude people everywhere in no matter where you are or what you are doing but yyou cat let a few bad apples ruin the whole basket I have myself ran into some morons trust me but I grab the memory button or VFO and say bye bye like I also do on CB radio. I have noticed a pattern with these grumpy (old) guys they are older andmost got there license through the military /jobs ETC so they really were not CB operators which is why they dont agree or understand CB radio.

I am seeing less and less of this kind of people or operators out there nobody lives forever WAIT ECCEPT ELVIS!! Anyways you get my drift there a dying breed like all of us. You will always have drunks and just plain out b@$+ards but theres always still good aswell.

All in all I use both radio services and theres always a war of who is better and louder and has more power than who but thats what my VFO knob is for and I love both radio services CB is what got me going in the first place. If you are interested in Amateur radio just get a book or study the online tests its just a few minutes of time and its something you can hold the rest of your life rather you use it everyday or not. ;)
 
Becoming a ham is a lot like having to register your guns in my view. And the less the government knows about what I have or don't have, the better I feel.
 
I think, that it is an evolution matter. You grow, looking for new possibilities.
You are going to the next level. It does not mean, that you have to leave CB behind.
Most important in my opinion is, that if you become HAM radio operator you should leave someting behind you. Stop transmitting of out the bands, using not allowed power etc. You can not be thief and policeman in the same time. You passed exam, get the license it obliges to behave. Be right, be that good one. If somebody can't understand that, sorry, it is not a HAM. Paper means nothing.
For me ham radio is a lifestyle. I'm playing a lot on HF still using my CB for diffrent things.
Mike
 
ham radio is full of guys being nice to each other all the time .that would get boring fast for me .
i need a little cursing,acting a fool,and general chaos to keep it interesting.
Click to expand...

I like a little bit of what you're talking about from time to time, too. I don't view being a ham as having to give that up. If I feel like doing that I flip the CB on and hang out with those guys, or I find the local 2 meter or 80 meter guys that do the same thing. Yes, all of that happens on 2 meters and 80 meters, as well.

There are probably some activities that most leave behind when they go ham, but a lot of them don't. A lot of the freebanders are hams. A lot are not. I gave up freebanding a long time ago, but I did it mainly because it became pointless. There was no need to freeband once I had access to all of the bands where there was more activity, anyway.

Running excess power on CB? Most of the hams that I know that are also CBers (there are a lot here) still run as much power as they want on CB. Why? Because they can and noone cares. It's viewed sort-of in the same light as going 75 mph on the 65mph speed limit freeway. All of the traffic is moving at 75mph and nobody is handing out tickets for it. I guess what I'm getting at here is that if you're a ham, you know what the rules are, but it's still up to each individual to decide for themselves what they want to do.

For me, I enjoy experimenting and learning about new things that I haven't tried yet, especially just to see if I can do it. My recent playing around with hitting satellites with a handheld radio is a good example of this. I would hazard a guess that most people on this forum are the type that make a hobby out of radio - they aren't just here to learn how to hook up a radio in their car and move on. The part of ham radio that is appealing to me is how there just doesn't seem to be any limit on "what to try next", no matter what your budget is.

I do think the location of the testing is a barrier for a lot of people. I don't have a good solution for that, but it seems like there should be a way to remove that barrier.
 
For all the CB only guys, what is keeping you from getting your ham license?
Is it a cost thing? ...mostly

Is it the test? No ... tests have never bothered me

Is it the imposition of rules? somewhat ...especially the Ham Police that have nothing else to do but report the smallest infraction.

Is it your Significant Other? Yes...no more spent on the hobby

Is it initial impressions of grumpy internet hams? Hell yes...see above

Is it ______ ? It's boils down to the fact that I don't care one way or another ... It's a hobby that I have become disintrested in over the years and am not going to spend the extra multi dollars (above what has already been spent) that it will take to change.

JMHO


 

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